The present disclosure relates to a fixing device fixing a toner image onto a recording medium and an image forming apparatus including the fixing device.
Conventionally, an electrographic image forming apparatus, such as a copying machine or a printer, includes a fixing device fixing a toner image onto a recording medium, such as a sheet or the like. The fixing device includes a fixing member (e.g. a fixing roller or a fixing belt) and a pressuring member (e.g. a pressuring roller or a pressuring belt) configured to come into pressure contact with the fixing member. The recording medium and the toner image are heated and pressed at a fixing nip formed between the fixing member and the pressuring member so that the toner image is fixed onto the recording medium.
For example, there is a fixing device including a fixing member, a pressuring member configured to come into pressure contact with the fixing member so as to form a fixing nip and a separating member configured to separate the recording medium passing through the fixing nip from the fixing member. The separating member includes a separating plate configured to face a passing region (a region through which the recording medium passes) of the fixing member with an interval and a contact piece configured to come into contact with a non-passing region (a region arranged outside the passing region) of the fixing member.
In such a fixing device, if the contact piece keeps on coming into contact with a part of the non-passing region of the fixing member, the part of the non-passing region of the fixing member is locally worn out by friction with the contact piece and there is a fear that the fixing member is broken.